HoverAir’s transforming modular drone has already been halted in the US

The Federal Communications Commission has withdrawn approval for HoverAir’s Versa, a pocket camera that converts into a self-flying drone, just days after the company used that same certification to launch a crowdfunding campaign built around US availability.

HoverAir unveiled the Versa on Indiegogo on August 18, and it raised more than $230,000 within hours. The pitch centered on FCC certification, a status the company’s own AQUA drone had failed to secure and one still out of reach for DJI’s newest models. Since late 2025, the FCC has stopped issuing new authorizations for many foreign-made drones, and HoverAir framed the Versa’s clearance as proof it had found a way around that restriction.

The design behind that claim was specific. The Versa’s camera and its detachable Flight Kit are sold separately, and the propeller unit carries no radio of its own — it draws power and flight data from the camera through simple contact pins. On paper, that meant only the camera needed its own FCC ID, since the flying component had no transmitter to certify.

The FCC did not accept that framing. In a statement, the agency said the device is a prohibited component under its Covered List rules regardless of how the parts are packaged, and that approving it had been an error. It told HoverAir to stop importing, marketing, or selling the Versa in the US immediately, and said it is considering further action against the company for what it called a willful violation. The device’s FCC ID has since disappeared from the commission’s public database.

HoverAir has already pulled the Flight Kit from its US storefront. Backers there can now only order the standalone camera, while Canadian buyers can still access the full drone bundle. The company told customers the change was due to “logistics updates” and declined to comment further when contacted by reporters.

The Indiegogo listing still shows a worldwide release with US pricing and an October shipping date, but the FCC’s action makes a US launch for the flying version unlikely in the near term. It is a familiar outcome for HoverAir: its AQUA drone ran into the same rule last year and has still not reached American buyers.

Sources: DroneXL, TechRadar, Tom’s Hardware, HotHardware, DroneDJ